Learn to Love Again
by pleasedonttouchmyhair
Summary: After the events of season three, Marinette is tired, and Adrien is confused. They've never been so out of sync before, but they'll get by-with a little help from their friends, of course. Adrienette endgame, but will probably explore Lukanette and Adrigami along the way.


**Before I begin, the first thing y'all should know is that this story _will _contain spoilers for season three. **

**This story more or less takes place after the season finale and will focus on the love hexagon or whatever you want to call it (including Lukanette and Adrigami). Most of you probably don't want to hear that, and to be honest, I wouldn't either.**

**Truth is, the reason I'm writing this is because it's sort of my way of coming to terms with it. Think of it as therapy fanfiction (let's be honest, we all need it). I don't know if Adrien and Marinette will end up together by the end of the show (they probably will, but still). All I can say is, in this story, in _my _story, they _will_. It might take a while, but I swear they will.**

**Also, I pinky swear I'll do my best to honor the characters as they have been written thus far. In other words, I won't take the easy route and completely destroy Luka and Kagami's characters in the process.**

**So if what you're looking for is respite from the grim possibility that Marinette and Adrien _won't_ end up together, you've come to the right place. And I'll be right here with you the whole time, staring dejectedly at my grades as they gradually slip lower and lower.**

**I don't own Miraculous Ladybug.**

* * *

Marinette set the Miracle Box on the shelf in her closet, sighing as she pushed it into the shadows. Tikki hovered at her shoulder, enormous eyes filled with concern, but said nothing. Marinette was glad; she wasn't sure she could pretend to be optimistic at the moment.

Beside the Miracle Box was a cardboard shoe box labeled "Adrien Stuff." It didn't feel right, having pictures of him all over her room since he and Kagami were dating, and besides, she felt ready. It was time to move on.

In addition to the pictures, the box held the lucky charm Adrien had given her for her birthday and the Valentine's Day card she'd fished out of the trash so long ago. Looking back, it seemed so ridiculous.

_Oh, right. _She opened the box, pulling out a macaron--Adrien's favorite kind. She'd put it in there without thinking; it wasn't as if she could save it forever. Instead, she began opening the delicate packaging, but found that her hands were trembling too much.

"Marinette..."

She sank to her knees, her right hand grazing the floor, searching blindly for the scissors she'd set nearby. Her vision was inexplicably blurry, but she still managed to cut the package that she'd poured so much of her heart into, crafting it and filling it again and again with something she knew he'd enjoy. Had _Kagami _done that? Did Kagami even know his favorite flavor?

She found herself stuffing the macaron into her mouth, her sobs muffled as she took her time to chew it. When she finally swallowed, she slumped over, laying on her side in a crumpled mass as Tikki stroked her hair lovingly.

She wasn't angry. She couldn't resent Adrien--_or _Kagami. She wanted to, but she couldn't. She was disappointed--in him, in the situation, and, most of all, in herself.

Because she could have told him at any time how she felt. Because she spent so long obsessing over him. Because she'd rejected Chat Noir, and now Luka, again and _again_ for him. Because even now, neither of them could compare in her mind to _him_. Because she was letting something so simple as _ice cream flavors _get to her. Because she had taken Chat for granted. Because it was her fault Master Fu lost his memories. Because it was _her _fault he was gone.

"There, there, Marinette," Tikki murmured, curling up in the girl's hair. "Take as long as you need."

* * *

Adrien's fingers stumbled across the piano's keys, again and again missing their mark. He was playing terribly, he knew, but he couldn't bear to give up--not in front of his father.

"I've heard enough," came Gabriel's grim voice.

Adrien slammed his hands on the keys--an involuntary expression of his frustration that he immediately cursed himself for. "I'm sorry, Father."

"What's the matter, my son? You seem distraught."

His words were caring, but his tone was as cold as always. Indifferent.

"I'm just tired."

Gabriel stared at his son for a long moment before his gaze softened. "Your mother used to say the same thing before she'd burst into tears."

Adrien scowled, but it was mostly so he wouldn't cry. "I'm okay. I'm just..." He sighed. "I'm worried about Hawkmoth."

It wasn't a complete lie; Adrien had hardly been able to sleep since the last akuma. It was much more than that, though. Master Fu was gone. Ladybug was the new Miraculous Guardian. Hawkmoth knew the identities of every Miraculous holder except for him and Ladybug, which meant she could never call on them again. Worst of all, Adrien was _still_ in the dark about almost everything.

"I could always pull you out of public school," Gabriel suggested.

Adrien hid his face from his father, refusing to let him see the resentment that lied there. "I like my school."

Gabriel fell silent. The next sound Adrien heard was the door clicking shut behind him.

Plagg emerged from Adrien's shirt pocket, tilting his head sympathetically. "That guy's a broken record," he joked hesitantly.

"What are we gonna do, Plagg?" Adrien asked, wandering to his bed and flopping onto it.

"I'm guessing you're not referring to dinner."

"Can Ladybug handle being the Guardian on her own? Could _anyone_?" He squeezed a pillow to his chest. "Wouldn't she need to know my identity? What if she gets akumatized?"

Plagg sank onto the bed, ears back. "I dunno. But...but Ladybug is really smart, and so is Sugar Cube. They'll know what to do, even if _we _don't."

"This isn't right," Adrien muttered. "It's just not."

"...I know. I wish I could do something to make you feel better." He grabbed Adrien's hand with his tiny paws. "Do you...do you want cheese?"

Adrien smiled sadly. "That's okay, Plagg. You need it more than I do."

Plagg nuzzled Adrien's hand. "Maybe we could see if Ladybug's transformed. You two could worry about this together."

Adrien's smile fell. "I don't think I can see her right now, like this."

"You know she's probably just as bummed as you, if not more."

"It's not that..." Adrien clutched the pillow tighter. "Honestly, I think I just need a break. I don't want to think about her or Master Fu or Hawkmoth. I just wanna be normal--at least for a day."

Plagg visibly flinched. "W-what?"

Adrien sat up, hearing the hurt in Plagg's voice. "I don't want to stop being Chat Noir," he said quickly. "I just want a break from...you know, all the responsibility. I'm just...so tired, Plagg."

"...I know, kid. Me too."

* * *

It was a while before Marinette's tears dried up, and when they did, it was a while longer before she accepted that no more would come. Tikki coaxed her into drinking a glass of water--"You have to stay hydrated, Marinette!"--and after a few gulps, she began to feel better.

Her mind had cleared up a bit after all that crying, she found, and it continued to do so as she sipped her water. _Okay, _she thought to herself. _This is manageable. All I have to do is get my priorities in order._ She shoved Adrien to the back of her mind--for now. At the moment, he was her biggest obstacle, so she'd just have to avoid thinking of him for a while.

Next was her Guardian training. She felt as if she knew next to nothing about what being a Guardian entailed, but she figured it probably wasn't the most pressing issue at the moment. She would stow the box away for the time being and focus on school and akumas.

"Right!" She nodded, determined. "I can get through this. I have to!"

"That's the spirit, Marinette," Tikki said encouragingly. "You can do anything you put your mind to!"

"Yeah!" She pumped her fist. "From now on, there will be no thoughts of Adrien! None!"

* * *

"So, I guess we're partners, huh?"

Marinette felt the corner of her eye twitch. Adrien was standing before her in goggles and a lab coat, smiling expectantly. She spared a furtive glance at Alya and Rose, then at Nino and Nathaniel.

_Even Chloe would have been preferable_, she thought bitterly.

Instead, she forced a smile and said, "Yup."

They were supposed to be prepping for the lab they'd be doing the next day--something about bacteria colonies, maybe--but Marinette could hardly form a full sentence, and for once, it wasn't because she was nervous. There was still some residual pain from everything with Kagami, so she opted out of the small talk. She soon regretted it, though, because, as she found, silence made it worse.

Not only was it harder not to think about everything on her mind without a conversation to distract her, but the lack of communication was actually hindering their progress quite a bit. Multiple times, they found themselves measuring out the same fluids and grabbing the same tools, so that in the end, they had double of everything and had to put half of it back. When Marinette finally snapped and told him just to let her get the rest, he reluctantly agreed to wait for her at their table.

"Is there something wrong, Marinette?" he asked when she'd returned, looking genuinely concerned. "Are you mad at me again?"

She pursed her lips. She couldn't tell the truth, or she might burst into tears, but...was lying any better? "Let's just get this done, okay?"

His face fell. "O-okay."

She cringed. "I'm not--I'm not mad at you, okay, Adrien? I just have a lot on my mind."

He looked a little less crushed after that. "Me, too, actually."

She snorted. "Really."

He frowned. "What, you don't believe me?"

She sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be a jerk. I'm just tired."

He didn't respond. Marinette began writing out her hypothesis, aware of his eyes on her.

* * *

Alya walked her home after school, allowing Marinette to relapse into comfortable silence as they made their way toward the bakery. Alya knew, of course, about Adrien and Kagami, so her journalist's instincts remained stowed away. Her mom-friend instincts, however, were in full-awakened mode.

"That guy's a jerk anyway, Marinette."

"No, he's not."

Alya hesitated. "No, he's not," she admitted, "but you can do better than him!"

"No, I can't."

"Of course you can!"

"No, I can't, Alya. There _is _no one better than him."

"There's someone better for _you _than him. Someone more..."

"In my league?"

Alya punched her lightly on the arm. "Far as I'm concerned, girl, _no_ _one_ is."

Marinette couldn't help but smile.

They stopped in front of the bakery, and Alya pulled Marinette into a hug. "You know things'll get better, girl."

Marinette pulled away, wiping her eyes. "I know. It's just hard."

Before either of them could say goodbye, the bakery door opened and Tom Dupain poked his head out. "You girls care for some cookies? They're fresh out of the oven."

The girls exchanged a smile and headed into the bakery, chattering in excitement as the smell of chocolate chip cookies wafted over them.

* * *

Adrien's schedule was constantly full of photo shoots, Chinese lessons, piano, fencing, akumas, and patrol, so it wasn't often he could get a break without sneaking or lying or begging his father for one. In light of his recent "distractedness," though, Gabriel had graciously allowed--in fact, practically urged--him to take a break.

The result was an afternoon at Nino's house, playing videogames and eating all of the junk food he normally would never touch.

It was nice to be distracted for an hour or two, but he couldn't say he felt much better afterwards. There was still so much weighing on his mind, and eventually it became clear that the only way to remedy the situation was to face it. So once he said goodbye to Nino, was escorted home, and had retired to his room, he wasted little time in transforming into Chat Noir and leaping out the window.

He found himself atop the Eiffel Tower, the spot he and Ladybug normally met before patrols. He called her about a dozen times before deciding just to wait. It wasn't likely she'd show up on her own--they hadn't planned a patrol for that night--but on the off-chance she transformed before the night was over, he waited still.

After about an hour, a raindrop landed on the tip of Chat Noir's nose, and within a minute, it began raining cats and dogs--minus the dogs. Taking it as a sign to give up, he extended his staff and vaulted back toward the house, the rain beating against his face and chilling him to his core.

_Oh, Ladybug_, he thought. _Where have you gone?_

**You know, it's occurred to me that I'm going to need to pull a lot of plot out of my ass to finish this story.**

**Well, whatever. It's not like I have homework or anything... Haha...**


End file.
